"I'd like to say a few words of tribute to this special woman, from me and on behalf of other close friends of hers."
Cheryl had never been a good public speaker. She looked up at the crowd and released a deep, shaky breath. The paper that she was holding in her hands shook uncontrollably. Try as she might, she just couldn't calm down. She scanned the crowd for Justin, who, when she saw him, smiled at her. It reminded her of their earlier talk, when he'd told her that everything was going to be okay. Feeling at ease, Cheryl looked back down at the paper and continued.
"As I look at you all here, I am struck by how many friends Kimberley had. There are people here who I have never met, yet talk very fondly of Kimberley and about their time together before Girls Aloud was formed. It's clear that Kimberley was so much, to so many.
I remember the first time I saw Kimberley, many years ago. I remember thinking that she was the most beautiful woman I'd ever laid eyes on, and as we grew closer, my thoughts were correct. She was stunningly beautiful, inside and out. I'm sure everyone here can agree.
With Kimberley, what you saw - was what you got. She lived without pretence and gave off her pure heart completely. She had several best friends but made each one of us feel special. As far as I can tell, Kimberley never really treated anyone differently from anyone else. She was unique, compassionate, talented, generous and kind. She was not stingy with her love. She told us, and she showed us, again and again. She was definitely a giver and in my humble opinion, I am blessed that I was lucky enough to spend a few moments on Earth with her."
Cheryl's voice cracked as she finished the last sentence. She looked up, completely oblivious to the tears running down her face. She quietly folded the piece of paper in half and tucked it into her dress pocket. As she stared around the tear-stricken crowd, she was reminded of how important Kimberley was to every single person in that room. It made her realise that she wasn't the only one feeling the way she was. She forced a weak, exhausted smile and then stepped down from the stage.
As she walked down to the pews, the song that reminded Cheryl so much of Kimberley started to play through the speakers. The song that Kimberley had once told her was one of her favourites.
I wished I was smarter, I wished I was stronger
I wished I loved Jesus, the way the my wife does
I wished it'd been easier, instead of any longer
I wished I could've stood, where you would've been proud
That won't happen now, that won't happen now
Cheryl sat down beside Justin and closed her eyes. She felt his arm come up to rest on the pew behind her and when she crumbled; he encased her in a huge hug. The tears fell freely and heavily down her cheeks as each sob tore from her body.
She could hear everyone around her crying, sniffling and blowing their noses into tissues. But after a while, the song started to drown out those noises until all she could hear were the lyrics.
There's a whole lot of singing, that's never going to be heard
Disappearing every day, without so much as a word, somehow
I think I broke the wings, off a little songbird
She's never going to fly, to the top of the world, right now
The next hour went by as a bit of a daze for Cheryl. She exchanged painful words with several members of Kimberley's family as they walked to where Kimberley was going to be buried.
As she watched her best friend, her lover, her soul-mate, get lowered into the ground, she found herself reaching down to hold Justin's hand. She knew that he was always going to be there for her now, just like she would be there for him. And she knew that Kimberley would be happy about this newfound, closeness between them both. They could understand each other and what they were both going through, which was exactly what Cheryl needed.
She thought back to the last conversation she had with Kimberley. They were both lying in bed, in the late evening, reminiscing about times together. Kimberley had told Cheryl how proud she was of her and of herself for being honest about her feelings before it was too late. By now, it was clear that Kimberley was too tired to engage in long, meaningful conversations. Deep down, Cheryl knew that it would be the last time that they would ever be able to do this. It was rapidly approaching the end and although she was terrified, she didn't confide in Kimberley. All she did was wrap her up in her arms and tell her how much she loved her.
Justin squeezed her hand and bought her out of her thoughts. She looked up at him through blurry eyes and then down at the grave.
"We are going to head to the wake. Do you want me to wait for you?"
Cheryl released his hand and shook her head, "No. I'm going to stay for a bit. I will see you there though."
He smiled sadly and then started his walk back down to the car park. Meanwhile Cheryl pulled out a sealed envelope from inside her purse. She kissed the back of it and then placed it against the gravestone.
She'd written the letter many weeks before Kimberley had passed away, and had been meaning to give it to her when they went away. Unfortunately, she had misjudged how much time they had together. It was a letter about her feelings and how she was never going to forget about her. She stood up and wiped at her damp eyes with the back of her hand. When she turned to walk away, the sun started to peek out from behind the darkened clouds.
Cheryl stopped mid-step and looked up towards the sky, and with a small smile on her face, said: "Aye, I know you love us too, Kimba."
THE END.
